Spring-support for upholstery



(No Model.)

J. A. STAPLES. SPRING SUPPORT FOR UPHOLSTERY.

No. 482,908. Patented Sept. 20, 1892.

' rested upon a wire bent up in the form of a and over the nextcorrugation and the spring NITED S ATES PATENT O FICE.

JOHN ALSTAPLES, or NEWBURG, NEW vonk.

SPRING-SUPPORT FORUPHOLSTERY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 482,908 dated September20, 1892.

Application filed March 10, 1892.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. STAPLES, a citizen of the United States,residing at Newburg, in the county of Orange and State of New York, haveinvented an Improvement in Spring-Supports for Upholstery, of which thefollowing is a specification.

Springs'for chairs, bed-bottoms, the, have heretofore been made as aninverted cone or spiral,the base orlarger portion being bent upwardlyand the smaller end being connected to wires. In some instances thespring has loop, through which a key or wire has been inserted. In otherinstances two wires have been employed for the spring to rest upon, andthe parts have been interlocked with a cross wire or key.

Where two wires or supports are made use of for the spring or range ofsprings there is difficulty in introducing the cross wires or keys, andwhere but one wire has been employed the base of the spring was liableto displacement laterally, and such base might turn sidewise orpartially rotate upon the supporting-wire.

The object of the present invention is to support a spring or ranges ofsprings upon a single wire, so that the parts are locked together insuch a way that the base of the spring cannot be displaced laterally andit is impossible for the spring to be turned or partially rotated aroundthe single wire. With this object in view the supporting-wire iscorrugated in a vertical plane, and the intersecting wire or key is alsocorrugated in a vertical plane, and the corrugations bear such arelation to the circular coil of the wire at the smaller end of thespring that when the end of the wire is passed below one corrugationrevolved until the end of the wire is interlaced all the way round theinterlocking of the corrugations and the pressure of the wire of thespring against the corrugations of the supporting-wires is such that theparts are firmly bound together and the coil of wire'at the smaller endof the spring, not being entirely circular but slightly enlarging orvolute in form, wedges against the corrugations of the supporting-wireand key or crossing-wire in such a manner that the further rotation ofSerial N0l 424,590. (No model.)

the spring in introducing the same into position is stopped and theparts are bound firmly by a wedging action, which renders the attachmentto the single wire as firm and reliable as though the spring were a partof the supporting-wire.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view representing the springand the supporting-wires. Fig. 2 is a magnified diagram illustrating therespective depth of corrugation in relation to the size of the wiresemployed, and Fig. 3 shows one of the supporting-wires separately andtwo crossing-wires in section.

The supporting-wire A is of a suitable length to pass from one side tothe other of the chair-seat,bed-bottom, or other article of upholstery,and with a chair-seat the ends of this wire may be bent upwardly andoutwardly to rest upon the top edge of the seat-frame,

' as shown in my application, Serial No. 409,1 1 2,

filed October 19, 1891; but Ihave represented the ends of such wire aspassing up 'wardly and provided with eyes 2 for the reception of screwsor nails, by which the same may be fastened to the seat-frame of achair, sofa, or similar article, and the horizontal or nearly horizontalportion of the supportingwire A is made with corrugations 3, which arepreferably uniform and extend across the horizontal portion ofthesupport, so that thesprin gs B can be connected therewith at anydesired point. This gives facility for the introduction of twoor moresprings upon the supportingwire at any desired places, so as to adaptthe springs to the chair-seat or other upholstery.

The cross wire or key 0 is to be corrugated with'corresponding bends tothe wires A, for the purposes named. Upon reference to the diagram, Fig.2, it will be observed that the depth of the corrugations is such thatwhen one corrugated wire is laid across the other corrugated wire thenecessary space is provided for the small coil 4 at the end of thespring to be interlaced by rotating such spring, the end of the wirepassing under one of the corrugated wires and over the next,

and when the spring has been rotated comthem, and the smaller end 4 ofthe spring is a circle, or nearly so, corresponding to the lengths ofthree or more corrugations, so that such spring occupies the bottom orrecesses of the corrugations, and such smaller end of the spring beingslightly a volute form,as well as an inclination in the upward twist ofthe spiral, such spring wedges tightly and outwardly in the corrugationsas well as upwardly under one wire and downwardly over the adjacentwire. In consequence of this construction the crossing corrugated wiresinterlock with each other, and no end movement can be given of one wirein relation to the other, and no movement of the spring upon either wirecan be given endwise of such wire, because the wire of the spring isretained within the corrugations of the crossing wires, and looseness isprevented by the wedging action aforesaid. Hence the spring cannot moveupon either wire, neither can the spring be rotated around the wirebecause the interlocking of the corrugated wires gives a base ofresistance equal to the depth of the corrugations, and there is notendency for the parts tobecome loose when the spring is compressed andone part cannot move on the other. Hence there will not be any noise asthe spring is compressed or relieved.

In chair and bed bottoms itis advantageous to corrugate the crossingwires throughout the entire length of the horizontal portions, and thesecorrugations should be reasonably close together, in order that theintersections of the wires may be easily varied to bring the springsnearer together or farther apart, and in the angles of chair-bottoms andin places where a length of cross-wire is not re quired a section of thecorrugated wire form.- ing a key'may be employed for each springbase,and it is always advantageous to make the corrugations in the crossingwires to correspond, or nearly so, in their depth and shape, so that theaction in the reception of the spring will be uniform at all sides ofthe spring.

In my application before mentionedIhave represented a spring-supportthat is corrugated in its horizontal portion; but in the saidapplication no claim is made thereon. In consequence of the corrugationsbeing substantiallycontinuous and such corrugations being comparativelysmall, a great facility is given for interlocking the crossing wires atdifferent distances apart and for introducing the springs upon thecrossing wires, and the corrugations prevent the springs from slippinglaterally, and a spring'support, corrugated as aforesaid, is to bedistinguished from a springsupport of wire that is looped only at theplaces where the springs are attached thereto, and in consequence of thespring-support being corrugated throughout its length a small amount ofelasticity is given to the Wire itself that lessens the tendency of thewire to break.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination, with a wire spring in whichthe coil of wire is circular, or nearly so, at the smaller end, ofcorrugated interlocking crossing wires with which the nearlycircular endof the spring is interwoven, so as to wedge tightly above and below therespective corrugated wires and bind the interlocking wires together andthe wire of the spring into the corrugations of the interlocking wires,substantially as set forth. 0

2. The combination, with a supporting-wire that is corrugated upon itshorizontal or nearly horizontal portion, of a crossing key similarlycorrugated and interlocking with the corrugations of thesupporting-wire, and a wire spring having a nearly-circular coilat thesmaller end thereof interwovenabove and below the crossing wires andinto the corrugations of the same, so that the respective parts aretightly wedged together, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the upholsterysprings, of supporting-wireshaving corrugations throughout their nearly-horizontal portions and bentupwardly at the ends and terminating with eyes or connections by whichthe ends of the wires are secured to the wooden frame, the corrugationsin the wires being adapted to receive the wires of the springs at thelower ends of such springs to substantially as set forth.

4.. The combination, with upholsterysprings, of suppporting-wirescrossing each other beneath the respective springs, such wires havingcorrugations sufficiently close together to allow the positions of theintersections to be varied to adapt them to the positions of thesprings, and the corrugations forming receptacles for the coils of wireat the ends of the springs, whereby the springs are held in position bythe corrugations of the wire, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with the upholsterysprings, of supporting-wireshaving ends that are adapted to be securedto the seat-frame,

prevent the springs slipping upon the wires, I

the substantially horizontal portion of one i or more of the crossingwires being corrugated to form receptacles for the coilsot wire' at theends of the springs and with which wires the spring is interwoven, so asto bind tightly above and below the crossing wires and hold the wiresand springs firmly together, substantially as specified.

Signed by me this 7th day of March, 1892.

JOHN A. STAPLES. Witnesses:

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, WILLIAM G. MOTT.

